An excerpt from Chapter 4 – A Force For Change “… In the grand scheme of diabetes self-management, I explain to patients and families that I (the doctor) don’t “manage” anyone’s diabetes. My role is more like that of a coach, occasional cheerleader, mentor, and at times role model I suppose. It truly is the sum of your choices; not mine or your doctor’s. Simply receiving diabetes education is often not enough. I see a three step process at work, and often times we barely get past the frst step. What we call “diabetes education” is intended to result in understanding on the part of the person(s) receiving it. But that is not the fnal element. Understanding should translate into behavior or actions for the education “loop” to be intact. There are many highly intelligent and understanding individuals in the criminal justice system who are well educated and understand all too well their actions, even the illegal ones. So what does all this have to do with using a CGM? In my opinion, it means all the difference in the world. It morphs a CGM device from a simple high or low blood alarm system (not a bad thing by itself) into the key for unlocking a vast new universe of diabetes self-realization that could once only be dreamed about. Basic diabetes self-care can be drawn as a decision loop. This loop is actually being executed daily by most persons with diabetes albeit often in a mindless fashion. Turning this chore into a more mindful action loop transforms this into an incredible tool for attaining the best blood sugar control possible for you. Like any loop, Sugar Surfing has no beginning or end. I tend to jump in at the point I call “monitoring”. This embodies many inputs both measurable and subjective. Most of us think of the act of measuring a blood sugar level with a meter or CGM device. But it’s more than that. It’s also being “in the moment”. That means being aware of recent, current and impending actions that are known to affect the ebb and fow of blood sugar levels in the body. Since blood sugar levels can be unpredictable, staying “in the moment” is a about the only approach that works for anticipating, or at least quickly reacting to unexpected shifts in BG. Once the status of the system (your body) has been sized up, either through the act of measuring a glucose level or glancing at the screen of your CGM device (or both), the next step is to analyze what is going on. This involves pulling in memories of recent actions (last insulin dose, most recent bout of exercise, what and how much was eaten (or will be soon) and more. The analysis step is where all of the little inputs come together for a final determination which is the next step: decision- making. Deciding is prioritizing one or more actions based on all the possible actions. The one that seems to be the best option is placed at the top of the list to be acted upon. Back up options are most likely numerous, but an initial action is required. The fnal part of our loop is execution: the act of following through on our decision. Immediately afterwards we are moving back into monitoring to determine the effect of our action and then modifying it as needed. You are probably saying “I already do this” and you would be right. But as has been written about by many authors, many of our decisions are mindless as opposed to mindful. This loop is a skill as much as it is a process. And as such, skills are practicable and can improve over time, or grow rusty with disuse.

    Trust Me, I'm a (Junior) Doctor In the vein of the best 'blog books' - the real life story of a hapless junior doctor, based on his columns written anonymously for the Telegraph Full description

    That means most people alive today will spend more years in elderhood than in childhood, and many will be elders for 40 years or more. Yet at the very moment that humans are living longer than ever before, we've made old age into a disease, a condition to be dreaded, denigrated, neglected, and denied. Reminiscent of Oliver Sacks, noted Harvard-trained geriatrician Louise Aronson uses stories from her quarter century of caring for patients, and draws from history, science, literature, popular culture, and her own life to weave a vision of old age that's neither nightmare nor utopian fantasy--a vision full of joy, wonder, frustration, outrage, and hope about aging, medicine, and humanity itself. Elderhood is for anyone who is, in the author's own words, "an aging, i.e., still-breathing human being."

    One heart. Two eyes. Ten fingers. You may think you know what makes up a human. But it turns out our bodies are full of surprises. What makes tears of joy different from tears of sadness?Why is a gut feeling so much smarter than you think?And why is 90% of you not even human?You may think you know the human body – heart, lungs, brain and bones – but your body is full of extraordinary mysteries that science is only just beginning to understand. This book, which accompanies a major new BBC TV programme, will change the way we think about our bodies.Doctors are in the business of keeping secrets, but medical confidentiality isn’t just about privacy, shame or discretion. It’s about vulnerability to exploitation. In this ground-breaking new book, the effervescent van Tulleken twins bring their knowledge and charm to the page to reveal just how well our bodies keep secrets from the things that want to exploit it: bacteria, viruses, fungi, parasites, larger predators and, crucially, other people. They uncover the remarkable stories behind the science we are not meant to know, on matters of life and death.Leading us through these revelations are tales of everyday miracles – the human stories that bind every one of us together through the universal stages of life. From the most extreme environments on Earth to the most extreme events, Chris and Xand reveal the incredible abilities every human shares. Arranged around the three themes of learning, survival and growth, this book shows the human body like never before.Combining cutting-edge science and technology with stunning photography that gives us a tantalising glimpse beneath our skin, the van Tullekens reveal the secrets that make very ordinary human body … extraordinary.

    Written by medical students and reviewed by top faculty, this unique book provides practical, tested advice for acing the USMLE Step 2 CK.

    Your head hurts. You're mildly annoyed as you get the kids ready for school and dress for work yourself. Meanwhile, an epic war is being fought, just below your skin. Millions are fighting and dying for you to be able to complain as you head out the door.So what, exactly, is your immune system?Second only to the human brain in its complexity, it is one of the oldest and most critical facets of life on Earth. Without it, you would die within days. In Immune, Philipp Dettmer, the brains behind the most popular science channel on YouTube, takes readers on a journey through the fortress of the human body and its defenses. There is a constant battle of staggering scale raging within us, full of stories of invasion, strategy, defeat, and noble self-sacrifice. In fact, in the time you've been reading this, your immune system has probably identified and eradicated a cancer cell that started to grow in your body.Each chapter delves into an element of the immune system, including defenses like antibodies and inflammation as well as threats like bacteria, allergies, and cancer, as Dettmer reveals why boosting your immune system is actually nonsense, how parasites sneak their way past your body's defenses, how viruses work, and what goes on in your wounds when you cut yourself.Enlivened by engaging graphics and immersive descriptions, Immune turns one of the most intricate, interconnected, and confusing subjects—immunology—into a gripping adventure through an astonishing alien landscape. Immune is a vital and remarkably fun crash course in what is arguably, and increasingly, the most important system in the body.

    Half the population will menstruate in their lifetime, and 1 in 2 women will struggle with their period health. Lara's book, previously self-published, has already garnered rave reader reviews because of its willingness to deal with this important aspect of women's health openly and compassionately. Containing invaluable advice for women of every age and circumstance, and detailing natural treatments from nutritional supplements to a healthy diet, this book promises to help women change their relationship with their menstrual cycle. Topics include how to come off hormonal birth control; what your period should be like; what can go wrong; how to talk to your doctor; treatment protocols for all common period problems, including PCOS and endometriosis. Thoroughly researched and written in clear and accessible language, Period Repair Manual is the ultimate guide to better periods.

    From listening to the imposter complex and bitchy inner critic to catastrophizing and people-pleasing, Andrea Owen--a nationally sought-after life coach--crystallizes what's behind these invisible, undermining habits. With each chapter, she kicks women's gears out of autopilot and empowers them to create happier, more fulfilling lives. Powerfully on-the-mark, the chapters are short and digestible, nicely bypassing weighty examinations in favor of punch-points of awareness.

    Growing up in Bangladesh in the 1980s, where the concept of women’s healthcare hardly existed, she understood how lucky she was to access the best in the world. But she couldn’t have been more wrong. Things started to go awry from the minute she stepped in the hospital, and after thirty hours of labor (two of which she spent pushing), Hossain’s epidural slipped. Her pain was so severe that she ran a fever of 104 degrees, and as she shook and trembled uncontrollably, the doctors finally performed an emergency C-section. Giving birth in the richest country on earth, Hossain never imagined she could die in labor. But she almost did. The experience put her on a journey to explore, understand, and share how women—especially women of color—are dismissed to death by systemic sexism in American healthcare. Following in the footsteps of feminist manifestos such as The Feminine Mystique and Rage Becomes Her, The Pain Gap is an eye-opening and stirring call to arms that encourages women to flip their “hysteria complex” on its head and use it to revolutionize women’s healthcare. This book tells the story of Hossain’s experiences—from growing up in South Asia surrounded by staggering maternal mortality rates to lobbying for global health legislation on Capitol Hill to nearly becoming a statistic herself. Along the way, she realized that a little fury might be just what the doctor ordered. Meticulously researched and deeply reported, this book explores real women’s traumatic experiences with America’s healthcare system—and empowers everyone to use their experiences to bring about the healthcare revolution women need.

    Her marriage of more than thirty years was suffering, and she was virtually immobilized by fear and anxiety. As the daughter of parents who both died before she was thirty, Stern was terrified of illness and death, and despite the fact that her acclaimed career as a food and travel writer required her to spend a great deal of time on airplanes, she suffered from a persistent fear of flying and severe claustrophobia. But a strange thing happened one day on a plane that was grounded at the Minneapolis airport for six horrible, foodless, airless hours. A young man on a trip with his classmates suddenly became dizzy and pale because he hadn’t eaten in many hours, and there was no food left on the plane. Without thinking about it, Jane gave him the candy bar that she had in her purse. A short time later the color had returned to his cheeks, the boy was laughing again with his friends, and Jane realized that this one small act of kindness—helping another person who was suffering—had provided her with comfort and a sense of well-being.It was shortly thereafter that this fifty-two-year-old writer decided to become an emergency medical technician, eventually coming to be known as Ambulance Girl. Stern tells her story with great humor and poignancy, creating a wonderful portrait of a middle-aged, Woody Allen–ish woman who was “deeply and neurotically terrified of sick and dead people,” but who went out into the world to save other people’s lives as a way of saving her own. Her story begins with the boot camp of EMT training: 140 hours at the hands of a dour ex-marine who took delight in presenting a veritable parade of amputations, hideous deformities, and gross disasters. Jane—overweight and badly out of shape—had to surmount physical challenges like carrying a 250-pound man seated in a chair down a dark flight of stairs. After class she did rounds in the emergency room of a local hospital, where she attended to a schizophrenic kickboxer who had tried to kill his mother that morning and a stockbroker who was taken off the commuter train to Manhattan with delirium tremens so bad it killed him.Each call Stern describes is a vignette of human nature, often with a life in the balance. From an AIDS hospice to town drunks, yuppie wife beaters to psychopaths, Jane comes to see the true nature and underlying mysteries of a town she had called home for twenty years. Throughout the book we follow her as she gets her sea legs and finally bonds with the burly, handsome firefighters who become her colleagues. At the end, she is named the first woman officer of the department—a triumph we joyously share with her.Ambulance Girl is an inspiring story by a woman who found, somewhat late in life, that “in helping others I learned to help myself.” It is a book to be treasured and shared.

    One MRI later, she is diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and told to pick a drug and accept her fate. Instead Jody starts asking questions--only to receive a different diagnosis from each specialist she turns to, from vitamin deficiencies to metal toxicity to depression.In this powerful, witty, and eye-opening account of her misadventures from misdiagnosis to miraculous recovery, Jody offers insightful tips on how to ask doctors the right questions to get the answers and treatment you need, listen to your body, and choose health over illness. After all, while we can't always heal, we can always take control of our health and ourselves--starting now.

    Take heart. You are not alone, although sometimes it can feel that way.Written by a blogger who suffers from an invisible chronic illness, Surviving and Thriving with an Invisible Chronic Illness offers peer-to-peer support to help you stay sane, be your own advocate, and get back to living your life. This compelling guide is written for anyone suffering with an illness no one can see—such as postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), fibromyalgia, multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS), Lyme disease, lupus, dysautonomia, or even multiple sclerosis (MP). This book will tell you everything you need to know about living with a complicated, invisible condition—from how to balance sex, dating, and relationships to handling work and school with unavoidable absences. You’ll also learn to navigate judg-y or skeptical relatives and strangers and—most importantly—manage your medical care.Suffering from a chronic illness doesn’t mean you can’t live an active, engaged life. This book will show you how.

    Two leading cardiologists draw on their collective fifty years of clinical cardiology research to show you how to combine the benefits of modern medicine, over-the-counter vitamins and supplements, and simple lifestyle changes to have a healthy heart.

    Starting from the inside out, Krissy’s expert coaching will help you to grow into a stronger, more confident you.Fitness is as much about the mental battle as it is the physical. Using simple techniques, Krissy will help you to develop the inner strength to do this for you, find the “why” that drives you, learn to value routine over motivation, challenge mental barriers and self-doubt, reframe your thoughts on diet and exercise, and build healthy habits that last.Uplifting and empowering, this book will inspire a sense of self-worth that will radiate into every corner of your life.

    We rely on them every day of our lives. They make us who we are. And yet the truth is they are far from being the accurate record of the past we like to think they are. True, we can all admit to having suffered occasional memory lapses, such as entering a room and immediately forgetting why, or suddenly being unable to recall the name of someone we've met dozens of times. But what if our minds have the potential for more profound errors, that enable the manipulation or even outright fabrication of our memories?In The Memory Illusion, forensic psychologist and memory expert Dr Julia Shaw uses the latest research to show the astonishing variety of ways in which our brains can indeed be led astray. She shows why we can sometimes misappropriate other people's memories, subsequently believing them to be our own. She explains how police officers can imprison an innocent man for life on the basis of many denials and just one confession. She demonstrates the way radically false memories can be deliberately implanted, leading people to believe they had tea with Prince Charles, or committed crimes that never happened. And she reveals how, in spite of all this, we can improve our memory through simple awareness of its fallibility. Fascinating and unnerving in equal measure, The Memory Illusion offers a unique insight into the human brain, challenging you to question how much you can ever truly know about yourself.